Reed article and method of producing the same



Nov. 13, m3. L473fi8 M. B. LLOYD REED ARTICLE AND METHOD OF PRODUCING THE SAME Filed July 23. 1921 l mented New. l3, i923.

untrue amas Lt'ttmt raranir crutch.

MARSHALL B. LLOYD, OF WIMQOMINEE, MICHIGAN, ASSIGNOR, BY MSEGN- MEETS, TO LEVI H. GREENWOOD AND GEORGE A. KEYWORTH, BO'I'H OF GARDNER, MASSAUSETTS, AND WILLIAM E. HOLMAN, 01F LEOMINSTER, MASSACHUSETTS,

rausrnns.

REED ARTICLE AND METHOD OF PBOD'U'GZfNG: THE SAME.

v Application filed July 23, 1921.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, MARSHALL B. More, a citizen of the United States, anda resident of Menominee, county of Menominee, and

State of Michigan, have invented a certain new, useful, and Improved Reed Article and Method of Producing the Same, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates generally to the pro- Ml duction of articles of woven reed and the like, but relates more articularly to the production of such articlgs from strip material. 'lhe term reed fabric means fabric of the stake and strand type and the invention 11h contemplates the use of the so-called fibre reed as the natural reed. Also any other material having the general characteristics of reed.

llhe general object of my invention is to increase the speed and decrease the cost of manufacture of such articles.

Another object of my invention is to pro vide an article of the character described which shall be of light weight, but of great relative strength, and a method of reducing same that can be readily practlsed by unskilled workmen.

Another object of my invention is so to selvage the fabric that it shall be adapted to the necessary shapin and reshaping operation but which she I, at the same time, have such inherent stability that when reshaped it shall support and maintain the fabric in the desired shaped condition.

My invention consists generally in an article of the form, arrangement, construction, and co-operation of parts, and in a method of producing same, whereby the above named objects, together with others that will appear hereinafter, are attained, and my invention will be more readily understood by reference to the accompanyin drawings which illustrate what ll con.- si er, at the present time, tobe the preferred embodiment thereof.

In said drawings:

Fig. 1 is a view of a piece of reed fabric or the like, which is prepared for use in practicing my invention.

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of one of the U-shaped frame members embodied in the illustrative article, the manufacture of which is to be described.

Serial Ito. 48?,205.

a Fig. 3 is a fragmentary perspective view illustrating a step in the manufacture of the article.

Fig. 4: is a perspective view illustrating the next step in the manufacture of the article.

l i 5 is a perspective view of the complete article.

. Fig. 6 is a fra entary sectional view substantially on t e line 66 of Fig. 55, viewed in the direction of the arrows, part of the fabric being broken away; and

Fig. 7 is a detail sectional view substantially on the line 7--7 of Fig. 5.

In the drawings I have illustrated the manufacture of a childs vehicle lmown in trade parlance as a sulky, but this, it should be understood, is merely typical of a class of articles that can be manufactured under my invention, and in that sense to be by way of illustration, except only where limitations appear in the claims directed to the specific article disclosed.

The sulky, as here shown, is provided with a seat bottom formed of the wooden frame members 1, 2 and 3 which are crossconnected-by means of the end frame members 4t and 5. The seat bottom is supported from the under-frame or running gear 6, by means of the upstanding or standard members 6 and 'Z'. Connectmg the standards 6 and 7 adjacent the upper end thereof is a U-shaped member 8.

It will be observed that the sulky embodies therein a considerable amount of woven reed fabric, and it is primarily with respect to the production, treatment, manipulation and securing thereof to the other sulky parts that the invention is concerned considering, as before, that the sulky is y way of illustration). For use in the upper part of the sulky ll produce a piece of woven reed fabric, the length of which is substantially equal to the linear dimension of the member shown in Fig. 2, and of a width slightly greater than the distance from the seat bottom to the top of the members 6 and 7. This reed fabric may be produced in any desired manner, either by first weaving it 1n tubular form and then severing it to form a sheet or strip, or byv initially producing it in flat form either in the size desired or in a larger sheet from which one or more of the fabrics can be out. In Fig. 1 such a fabric is shown and therein 9 represents the stakes and 10 the filler strands. The ends of the filler strands 10, in this instance, are secured within the metallic binder strips 11 and 12 which may vary in shape and material, but which are referably of U or channel shape so that the filler strands may readily be inserted therein and the binder strips securely fastened therein as by ressing. The metallic binder strips 11 and 12 should be formed of a metal such as is capable of being bent or folded without cracking and yet should be\ of such character as to have considerable inherent rigidity because, as will appear directly, I rely upon these binder strips to support and maintain the fabric in shaped condition. A hard brass or cold rolled steel are metals which may be used for this purose. p Having thus provided the fabric, conditioned as illustrated in Fig. 1,it is bent to conform to the seat of the sulky and the lower portion thereof is secured to the wooden frame parts, as is well shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5. As is well shown in Fig. 4, however, a considerable portion of thefabric projects above the member 8 of the sulky and since the member 8 extends rearwardly and upwardly, as is best shown in Fig. 6, more of the fabric projects above the member 8 and at the front than at the rear. This surplus fabric is utilized to provide a very artistic rolled or curved upper edge, illustrated in Fig. 5. To this end the rear central portion of the fabric is formed or folded directly over the member 8 and secured thereto, whereas the side portions of the fabric are shaped to a roll having a curvature considerably greater than the curvature of the frame 8, as is well shown in Figs. 5 and 7. Except for the metallic binder strips 11 and 12 it would be impossible to maintain this large curve or roll in the fabric as it would be quickly flattened and distorted so as to destroy the appearance of the article, unless the frame of the sulky were built up to receive and support the fabric. Thus the metallic binders 11 and 12, not only form a selvage for the fabric, but they perform the additional and hi hly important function of giving the fabric such rigidity as enables it to maintain its desired shape without the necessity of a proximate supporting frame. By such procedure great variation in the shape, form and curvature of the fabric can be secured without the necessity of providing specially shaped and built up supporting frames that conform to the fabric.

In similar manner the footwell 13 of the sulky may be produced from a sheet of woven reed fabric which is provided with metallic binder strips 14. The flat fabric may thereafter be bent or shaped to the desired form in which shape it will be maintained by the metallic binder strips 14.

The many advantages of my invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art to which this appertains without further comment.

I claim:

1. The method of producing reed articles that consists in applying metal binder strips to edge portions of the fabric, applying the fabric to a frame and in part conforming it thereto, and in part shaping the metallically bound edge portion away from the frame, and thereby supporting said nonframe supported portions through the medium of said metal binder strips.

2. The method of producing reed articles that consists in applying metal binder strips to edge portions of the fabric, applying the fabric to a frame and in part conforming it thereto, and in part shaping the metallically bound edge portion away from the frame so that one end at least of the binder projects beyond the frame and is so shaped as to afford a substantially self sup porting section of the combined fabric and binder.

3. The method of producing reed articles that consists in applying metal binder strips to edge portions of the fabric, applying the fabric to a frame and in part conforming it thereto, and in part shaping the metallically bound edge portion away from the frame so that one end at least of the binder projects beyond the frame and is so shaped as to afford a substantially self supporting section of the combined fabric and binder, said shaped projecting portion defining a roll.

In testimony whereof, I have hereunto set my hand, this 13th day of July, 1921.

MARSHALL B. LLOYD, 

